Well-written novel about a little known part of World War II where children were transported by ship from Great Britain to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States. This book is a fictionalized version of what happened to one of the boats and its occupants when the ship was torpedoed.

I needed a "page turner" to read during surgery recovery and this book did not disappoint. ( )

For as much as I've read and learned about history, there's still so much I know nothing about. I knew nothing about CORB or the "seavacuees" before reading this book. I am glad to know about those poor children (and adults), but am appalled at what trauma they suffered.

This is a well-written book, but not one I see myself re-reading. That said, I would recommend to readers of fictional WWII books: it's a new focus on an oversaturated field. ( )

Alice has had a shock. She has found a downed airman and he dies right in front of her. From then on, she is determined to do her part in the war. She decides to escort a group of children away from the bombing in London to safer shores.

Lilly is a widowed mother of two. She makes the horrendous decision to send her children to a safe place, away from the blitz in London. Little does she know her life will be forever changed.

The ship carrying these children and Alice is torpedoed after their navy escort leaves them unattended. You can just imagine the heartbreak. A few manage to get on a life boat. It is a lifeboat not counted. So it stays for days out a sea. What these children and Alice experience is horrendous. And you will need to read this to see exactly how they are rescued…YOU WILL NOT BE SORRY!

Talk about an emotional read. This novel unravels you! I cannot imagine being a mother and having to make a decision to send my children away. And then not be able to save them. This book pulls at every heart string you have. And to know it is based on real life events. GEEZ!

Hazel Gaynor has done it again!

Need a fabulous story based on real events…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review. ( )

This novel focuses on the program to send British children overseas during World War II. Alternating between Lily, a mother who believes she is sending her two young children to safety, and Alice, a young woman tasked with accompanying the children on their journey. Expectations about safety are upended when a torpedo strikes the ship carrying the children, causing Lily to believe one of her children is dead, while unknown to her, Alice and a few surviving children (including Lily's son) are saved in a lifeboat and spend days at sea. A very compelling novel and one about an aspect of WWII I wasn't familiar with. ( )

This well-written and well researched novel is one of the most emotional World War II era novel that I've read in a long time. It's based on real events and highlights the heroism of the people in involved.

It's 1940 and England is sure that Germany will be bombing them and many people even believed that Germany would try to invade them. The government wanted to keep the children safe. Some children were sent from the large cities to the rural areas of England as part of Operation Pied Piper. Another push by the government was to send children to Canada or Australia for the duration of the war.

Lily is the widowed mother of two children. They live in London and she wants her children to be safe but she also wants to keep them close to her. She finally decides that to keep them safe, she needs to sign them up to be sent to Canada. The government reassures her that the boat with the children will have a Navy escort and should be safe from German U-boats during the journey

Alice is a quiet unassuming kind of person. She's content working in a library and teaching school. Her mother keeps telling her that she needs to do something to help the war effort and she decides to sign up to be an escort to a group of children going to Canada. She's nervous and excited about the upcoming trip.

The trip goes well and after most of the people get over their sea sickness, it looks like smooth sailing into Canada until a German u boat torpedoes their ship and sinks it. Alice manages to get into a life boat with several children and other adults. They spend days on the sea, hoping for rescue while the parents at home are dealing with the loss of their children. Alice and Lily's lives and the lives of Lily's children are meshed together as everyone fights for survival.

The novel is told in alternating chapters by Alice, fighting for her life in a lifeboat and Lily, dealing with her fear that her children are lost. Both women are trying to be brave under terrible circumstances. The scenes on the life boat are gritty and real and the reader will be rapidly turning pages to find out if they all survived.

The author has done a tremendous job at her research. I read a lot of WWII books and this is the first one that I can remember that is about children being sent from England to other countries for safety. Be sure to read the author's comments at the end of the book to find out the brave women that this story was based on. ( )